


Never to Yield

by Lee_Mix



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-11
Updated: 2015-11-11
Packaged: 2018-05-01 03:26:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 749
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5190368
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lee_Mix/pseuds/Lee_Mix
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“I’ll be sixteen this year, Ladybug.” Chat Noir’s bitter amusement weights on her chest like a stone. “What kind of messed up world is this that it sends kids to fight an adult’s greed?"</p>
            </blockquote>





	Never to Yield

 

 

> [ _**(Also available on tumblr)** _ ](http://unluckyfortunes.tumblr.com/post/131807345231/never-to-yield)
> 
>  

He worries when he’s not surprised at the blood trickling down his lip anymore.

Red, just like the woman clad in the colour who lets out a grunt of satisfaction as the black moth purifies in her soft glow. He crouches in the shadows, and she steps out into the lights of Paris, and he watches her with green eyes of envy.

“Looks like we have some extra time before we run out,” she gestures to her wrist. “Didn’t expect that last one to go down so easily!”

“…Yeah.” He pulls off his glove, slightly torn, and cleans up the blood with his tongue. “Easy.”

“Chat?” Ladybug turns and chuckles lightly. “You  _really_ are like your name, aren’t you?”

He knows she’s surprised when he doesn’t respond with a usual quip, and he can’t bear to look at her. The flirtation, the affection for her that he’s become used to doesn’t come up in his mind, and all he can do is offer a half-hearted smile, before sinking further into the overcast shadow of the building. 

Time and familiarity to this routine have gotten him used to the white-hot pains, the temporary blindness and seeing in red. What he isn’t used to is  _how_ familiar he’s gotten to it. Something is waging an underground war on Parisian nights, and he’s battling the front-line of it. 

“Are you sure you’re alright?” Ladybug crouches in front of him. “Chat, you’re freaking me out. Did you get hurt? Look, you’re bleeding…”

She reaches out to touch his face, and he catches her hand with his ungloved palm. 

“I’ll be  _sixteen_ this year, Ladybug.” Chat Noir’s bitter amusement weights on his chest like a stone. And I’m used to fighting  _already._ ”

“What?”

“Remember on our first fight, I freaked out when my finger got cut?”

She offers a weak smile. “Of course, I do, I was as well. We were both freaked out. But that’s… in the past, right? We’ve–”

“Gotten  _used_ to it. That doesn’t scare you?”

“I…” Her stammering fades away when she bites her lip. “Well… this is only temporary. We’ll defeat it and go back to our normal lives soon, right? Chat, it’ll be okay.”

Chat’s mind– _Adrien’s mind–_ flashes with what he figures normalcy to be. A missing mother and an ever-absent father. Few close friends, and a mask that is more transparent than the one Chat Noir wears. “Normality” had lost all rhyme and reason for him long ago. 

“Ladybug, you…” He hangs his head. “Sorry, my Lady, but I don’t think you understand. Maybe we can’t share our identities with each other–I have no desire to force you to tell me, but…”

“But?”

“I don’t understand what  _normality_ is. I don’t want to fight to my  _death_ to be normal, but my  _own_ idea of normal is… most likely not what you’re used to.”

That warm hand on his shoulder leaves and slides a frosty mask of indifference into his face, until his ungloved hand, is taken prisoner by her example, and she’s leading him out of the shadows.

He’s forced to stand up with a stumble, and he looks at her with confusion. “What are you–?”

“Chat, look.” She gestures to the entire city. Golden hues light up between the ground and the skies. “This city?  _You’re_ helping protect.”

“I…” He falters. “I know that.”

“I don’t think you do.” She grips his hand tighter, and a warmth blossoms in his chest. “It’s not nice we’re fighting all the time, I get that. I get nightmares too.” He wants to speak, but she isn’t done talking. “But look at this city. Every night, because of the work we do, someone sleeps safer. Someone can go home and see their family because  _we_ help this city to live.”

Her hand goes to touch his cheek, and her thumb swipes across his bloodied lip. “We’re not getting out of this without scars, but it’s important to remember that we have each other, and all this fighting  _has_ a purpose in the end.”

Chat…Adrien…he leans into her hand, feeling his eyes begin to sting. Green mixes with red, and he closes his eyes.

“And what about when all this is over?” He croaks. “Where will you be after all this ends?”

“Right with you. When everything calms down… then I can be Ladybug  _and_ my normal self. With you.” 

He manages a small smile. “…I look forward to it, my Lady.”

**Author's Note:**

> Because nobody finds it disturbing that kids are fighting against abominations on a daily basis, and that shit can destroy minds. Even if they are prancing around in costumes, their lives are still threatened. That can’t be good for the mind.


End file.
